Rufus porter



the shaft by the pin 1'.

UNITED STATES PATENT O EEICE.

nUFUs PORTER, OE WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OE COLUMBIA.l

cHAlR-CAN E.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 11,271, dated July 11, 1854;

To all whom, 1315 may concern;

Y Be it known that l, RUFUS PORTER, of the city and county of Washington, and District of Columbia, have invented a new and useful Portable Chair, a walking cane or staff that maybe instantly converted to a chair or table; and I do hereby declarethat the following 'is a full and exact description thereof,

I reference being hady to the annexed-drawings,

making part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a perspectiveiview ofthe chair' in its expanded position. Y Fig.'2^is a vertical section of the same. Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the inventionin thel compact formrof a cane, and Fig. 4 is al1-'elevation of the same'. T o `a Vertical shaft Bi one footlongf and l ve=eighths of an inch 'in diameter is attached a c'ylindrical hub C two inches long and' one and a `quarter 'inch 'in-diameter.

"lhe upper portion ofthe shaft, which extends .tive inchesaoove the hub, is round, but the portion below ther hub issquarci InIt-he lowerend of the hub are four slots corresponding to the four faces" of the shaft, and

into each of these slots is fitted a tenon e,

'which is formed upon the upper end of a verticaLleg I) and secured injthe slot by ahorizontal pivot fn, which extends-through the tenon and a portion of the hfub from c to c. Each of the four legs is one foot long and of lafsegmental form, butvvithfits,` edges niitered, so that the four, whenui'n contact with the shaft, assume a cylindrical foi-m.

Upon the square portion gof; the' shaft is mounted a sliding socket E, to ,which are connected by hinge-joints the upper .endsof four radial 'wire braces vF, the 'lower ends of which are connected by staples to theffourlegs near the bottom thereof, andthe socket E is pre' vented from passing oif from the bottom of Another hub G, of equal dimensions with the hub C, is mounted upon the round part of the shaft B and has `four slots' in the upper end thereof. into which are fitted four tenons o, which are formed upon the lower ends of four 'arms Il 'and rSecured in the slots' by pivots u, andV to the heads of theseA arms are 'attached -the four corners of a square piece of canvas \V ,'which constitutes the seat Upon ther' Shaft' BE above.

mounted a sliding socket I, in the top of which are four slots `which receive, the centerward Vends of four radial wire bracesJ, through which pass four pivots or an iron ring, which -is inclosed in the metal of the socket. are connected by staples to the four arms near the upper ends thereof.

The shaft B is. surmounted by a! capf'il,

which prevents the socket I from :sliding oif therefrom, and'when the said socket is ele vated tothe cap the arms H are held at an angle of about fifty degrees with the shaft B,

and the socket I is prevented from descend-f ing by mcans'of two opposite spring-checkss s. The arms are of a segmental form 'with mitered edges and assume a-cylindrical form when brought up to a compact position, and when required to remain in that position the portions ot the canvas which protrude' between the arms are wrapped aroundthe arms and thearms and canvas are secured by a tube or sheath M, to. the top of which is attached a head'A.'

The legswhen in the compact position asd sume a cylindrical form and are secured in that position by a ferruleor band m, the bottom of Which is attached to a foot-post Z,

which is about fourteen 'inches long and of.

diameter corresponding to. that of the coinpact form of the legs.

Fiveinchesz of the up- .per part ofthe foot-post is' reduced to the vform' of a squaretenon K, whichis inserted* inthe squarecavityfbetween the four legs, -I and the band m binds the exterior. The legs andfootfpost` are slightly conical, tapering from the hubs t0 the bottom.-

A metallic plate-ring X, Vhalf an inch Wide and haviugits upper edge bent inward, is at- Atachedto the top of the hub C, but the upf',

Vper edge extends an eighth of-,an inch above the hub 4C and the bent edge or flange enters a groove o, which` is cut in the hub G.

When this device is to be used asa. table,

`theV several parts are. made of"larger dimensions, and a single hub with slots ineach end may answer the purpose' of two. fThe center.

shaft may in that case extend as high as the arms. .Both arms and legs have small grooves cut longitudinally ,on the inside thereof to accommodate the-wire braces when in the com- The outward ends ,of these bracesV What, 1 claim es my invent-ion, and desire legs to. sliding sockets in such a. marmer that.

Constructing a chair or table by hinging compact form, as herein described. four arms and four legs to a hub or hubs aty RUFUS PORTER. tacked to or mounted upon aeentralvertical XVitxlesses: shaft and supporting said arms and .legs by JOHN L. SMITH, radial braces which connect said arms and B. B. HUGHES.

to secure by Letters Patent, isfthe said arms and legs may be closed up to :l 

